Chapter 50
Shivana
The dust had settled the last few weeks. It almost felt normal around the clubhouse, at least as normal as I recalled it. Some of the bunnies said it was never the same after Raven died, but I wasn’t here then, so I had no way to know the difference.
Jackal never outright said the words, but I was fairly certain Butch was dead. The night Lacy’s wedding was ruined, we spent a while chatting with Petrov, then once he and Jackal headed off to wherever all the other officers were, we all ate, then exhaustion set in.
I didn’t think I’d ever tire of the adrenaline rush from being here, but when I crashed, I crashed hard. It was nearly dinnertime the next day when I finally woke up, starving and insanely horny.
Jackal took care of both problems promptly, and Petrov was still there when we were having dinner. We were surprised to learn that Angie was happy to have us back for a do-over for Lacy and Eagle with a little help from Petrov and Coop. But of course, it would be a couple of months before we could get on the schedule again. We needed new tuxes for the guys anyway, and we all had to get our dresses dry cleaned before they’d be wearable again.
But tonight was the first night we planned a good crowd since the wedding that never happened. Mama Hen and Lacy had been cooking and baking up a storm most of the day, and I had spoken to my parents for a long time.
Dad wanted to follow up on my interview with his friend from the CDC. It went great, and I was almost certain I’d be getting an offer. I was hung up on getting the interview because of Dad, but after connecting with some old friends from school about a conference happening in Atlanta, several mentioned that the medical field isn’t different from any other field: it’s not always what you know, but who you know. So, instead of harping on it like it was a disservice to me to get involved, I decided to thank him and accept my blessings.
They, of course, were nervous for me to be starting a new life so far from them, but they actually seemed proud of me. Mom still tried to get me to spill about my love life, but for now I only shared that I had someone special. I’d eventually have to come clean, especially if we did plan to get married. I understood why Lacy was no-contact with her parents, but my parents weren’t like hers. They were wonderful. They’d probably have concerns, but I knew they wouldn’t disown me for marrying Jackal. My parents wanted me to be happy, and I was able to take care of myself thanks to them.
Since things had calmed down and I was waiting around to hear back about the job, I left my laptop in the room and was enjoying sitting outside in my favorite chair, listening to music, and reading a smutty book. Midnight Inferno by Saam King was an enthralling story about a woman who goes to a new state for the job of her dreams, only to discover her hot new boss shifts into a wolf and thinks she’s his fated mate. Perfect afternoon.
I was so deep into the story that I didn’t realize anyone was behind me until strong hands kneaded the muscles in my shoulders. Pulling my earbuds out, I asked, “How long have you been there?”
Jackal leaned further, his hands going across my chest. “Long enough to see if Selene is gonna run like he told her. She sounds as stubborn as someone I know.”
Rolling my eyes, I pulled my bookmark from the back and put it in place, closing my book. “I’ll have you know they go on to have a fantastic romance. And spoiler alert, they live happily ever after.”
He chuckled, then reached his hand out. I obliged, and he pulled me to my feet.
We headed inside and grabbed drinks when we started to hear the familiar sound of Harleys coming in droves.
There were mostly Destiny’s Enforcers wandering around, but a few other clubs showed. After we ate, Jackal went to chat with Hawk and some other guys, and I, of course, eavesdropped. I was still a psychiatrist and the whole culture was just as fascinating to me now as the day I arrived. Maybe one day I’d write a book about it. But should I do nonfiction or fiction?
“No more Hellbound Heathens, then,” one of the men I wasn’t familiar with said.
“Nope. Apparently, they hadn’t recruited too many guys and you took out most of them. The ones that were left blew town, probably found other clubs.”
“Crazy fuckers. Who did they think they were?”
“They’re all nothing now. Can’t even say they met their destiny because nobody knew who the fuck they were,” one of them said, sending them all into a roar of laughter.
“Lil Bird, it’s not polite to listen to other people’s conversations,” Jackal said in my ear.
“It’s not like they’re not yelling it for anyone to hear,” I said. Which was true. They were all drunk and silly like high school girls already. “You’d think they’d have enough sense to realize we’re outside,” I told him as I waved my arms through the air.
“I love you, silly woman.”
I was about to turn and tell him I loved him but Hawk wolf-whistled not far from us and I had to shake off the sound.
“Hey, everyone!” Hawk yelled. “I wanna thank you all for coming out. It’s been a crazy year, but we’re still standing!”
The crowd that gathered cheered. The sun was still up, but it was starting to fade as the evening descended. A couple of members were lighting the torches that were scattered around the grounds.
Jackal held me close as we listened to Hawk.
“I want to thank you all who came out for the wedding, especially the ladies who had to deal with a change of plans,” Hawk said. Some women mumbled, but nobody spoke up loud enough to hear their complaints. Hawk waved his hands. “I know, I know. Especially sweet Lacy. But we’re making up to her in a couple of months. We hope y’all will come back down and we can really party then.”
This garnered more cheers.
“We also want to give a special thanks to a very intelligent, strong, and beautiful person. She’s put up with a lot in the short time she’s been with us, but she’s saved our asses more than once.”
“If this about me, I’d say way more than once,” I joked.
Jackal squeezed me, but Hawk just laughed. “More times than I can count, Dr. Raja.” He turned and waved for someone. Looking over, it was Mama Hen, and she was carrying a box. It was shallow but wide.
Once Mama Hen made it to Hawk, they both walked over to me. I looked around, realizing all eyes were on me. “Jackal, what the hell is going on?”
Hawk stood in front of me, and Mama Hen stood next to him, smiling like a fool. “Dr. Raja, Shivana, we voted, and it was agreed that you will be patched in as property of Jackal, becoming his Old Lady. Do you promise to always stay true to our destiny and enforce our bylaws?”
“Do I have to be called that?” A bunch of women laughed, but Mama Hen grimaced. “I mean, absolutely. I promise.”
“Do you promise to always stay true to Jackal and support him and the club?”
“I promise.”
“Jackal, present her patch,” Hawk said.
Jackal pulled the lid from the box and pulled out a cut. “Shivana, I promise to stay true to you, and always protect and support you. Will you be my Old Lady?”
He held it up, and it had a patch sewn on the front that said Lil Bird. My eyes got misty. “Show me the back,” I said, knowing what it said, but needing to see it.
He turned it, and just like Daisy, Lacy, and Mama Hen, there was a property patch, and mine said Property of Jackal with the club name and everything.
My hands went to my cheeks, and I blinked away the tears. “I will! I do! Yes! What do I say, oh my God?”
Jackal smiled and stepped behind me, helping me put my new cut on. I grabbed the leather, looking down at the patch. “This is amazing!”
“Welcome to the family, Shivana!” Hawk shouted, and everyone raised their drinks, hooting and hollering as Jackal grabbed me, kissing me hard and deep.
“Goddamn, you look so hot in that,” Jackal said, finally breaking away.
“I love you, Jacob. And I love this,” I said, running my hands over the leather again.
“I got one more surprise for you,” he said.
But Daisy, Lacy, and Jeannie ran over, jumping and squealing. I couldn’t help but join in. “Oh my God, did you see this?” I asked, running my hand over my name patch.
“Aww! Lil Bird!” Lacy crooned.
“Property of Jackal,” Jeannie said as she walked behind me.
“Looks perfect,” Daisy said.
Jackal cleared his throat, so I broke away from my friends and grabbed his hands. “I’m sorry, but this is fucking cool. I had to flaunt!”
He smiled and leaned down for a peck. “I’m glad you’re excited to be my Old Lady. But like I said, I have one more thing.” He pulled a rolled-up paper from his cut. “Here.”
My brow furrowed, but I unrolled it. “This is a blueprint. I don’t get it.” It was impressive, but I honestly didn’t understand.
He grabbed my shoulders, then pointed off through the woods. “Just past there, I got us a plot of land. And that blueprint is what’s going on it.”
My mouth fell open, and I looked back at the plans. “Oh my God. You’re building us a house?”
“Yep. Close to the club, but far enough we can have our own driveway. So when your parents come, we won’t have to explain why you live in a clubhouse.”
“You thought of my parents?” The tears were coming back. Good tears. Happy tears.
He rubbed my shoulders. “They’re important to you. But we can’t very well have them here, now can we?”
Glancing around at the crowd, I shook my head and sniffled. “No. Definitely not. But I can’t believe this.” Looking at the plans again, I noticed the extra room. “You even have an in-law suite here.”
“Can’t have them sleeping on the couch, now can we?”
“I mean, no, but I figured we’d just have to get them a hotel or something.”
“Lil Bird, around here, family stays together.”
My family was tight-knit and we never stayed in hotels when visiting even second cousins, but I wasn’t sure how he’d feel having my physician dad and overbearing mom in our space. “And you’d let them stay with us?”
“Well, we can talk about the longevity of that, but they definitely have a place when they visit.”
Flinging myself into his arms, I cried against his chest. “This is amazing. I don’t know what to say.”
“Say you’re okay living at the clubhouse for about six more months because that’s what we’re looking at for the build.”
“Hey, I love the clubhouse.” That was true. It was wild and fun, and my friends were there. “But I love you more.”
“I love you, Lil Bird. Now, let’s go make this official.”
“We didn’t just get married.”
“But you just became my property, and that’s even better,” he said as he scooped me up over his shoulder and smacked my ass hard.
I squealed, then waved and blew a kiss to my friends as my man took me inside to make it official.
“I can’t wait ‘til I get snipped in a couple of weeks. We’ll be able to raw dog it by the time the house is done, is what the nurse told me.”
“Oh my God, you scheduled it!” I yelled as I bounced with each step.
Yep, I loved this man.